Communication is the best way to get your business talking. The goal is to make some noise to be heard (a bit like the boy in front of the microphone) and to build your reputation. On the other hand, there is little sense in making noise if you do not closely target your communication actions.
It must therefore be carefully defined, in accordance with your business and your objective! To succeed in this methodology, I offer you an example of a communication plan. Be precise, use the right tools, and seek support.
Recommended read : How to Choose Your Dream Car: Tips for Finding the Ideal Model
Define Your Policy
To start your communication effectively, you need to lay the groundwork through the so-called “copy strategy.” This is what will keep consistency in your actions. The copy strategy begins with a key phase: analyzing your target.
Target Analysis (Persona)
You need to know your objectives. There are several types of objectives:
Related reading : Tips and Inspirations to Transform Your Interior into a Trendy and Cozy Space
- Main Objective: Who are you talking to?
- Core Target: Who is your ideal customer?
- Secondary Objectives: What can you achieve by reaching your main target and core target?
Ask yourself the following questions to uncover some of the most important things about them:
- What is your target’s gender?
- What is their age group?
- What is their socio-professional category?
- What are their hobbies and activities outside of work?
You can then create buyer personas using these items. For example, if you are an entrepreneur deciding to launch an online magazine for students, you might have a typical profile:
Carine, 29 years old, sociology student aiming for a Master’s degree, volunteer at SAV 35, goes to the restaurant with friends every weekend, reads online news, is part of the so-called Generation Y, on Facebook to connect with friends, Twitter for updates, and LinkedIn for professional visibility…
Communication Tips: Create a table with the main information to facilitate reading. Be visually appealing and concise to enhance your communication.
Determining Objectives
Once you have defined your goal, you need to set the objectives that will be achieved through your communication.
Are you increasing your awareness?
Use the Google Display Network to highlight your brand and the services or products you offer. With a larger budget and local coverage, choose to buy advertising space by renting a sign in your commercial area or prefer a press insert in a local newspaper. Ask us for advice!
If you have a smaller budget, work on your SEO to get back to the top results on Google or Bing. This is a great way to get known. For example, type “Create a blog” into Google, and you will see our article appears in position 0 (or the first organic result), below paid ads. There are over 200 SEO criteria to be visible. Don’t worry, by simply following a few essential rules, you will be able to position yourself very quickly 😉
Selling a specific product or service?
Here, you can use Google’s or Bing’s paid advertising network: this allows you to position your products in front of Google’s organic results. Depending on the defined keywords and the bids associated with each keyword, you can immediately respond to user demand.
You can also use affiliate marketing. The goal is to position your products on an affiliate website. You leverage the traffic from the seller’s website, giving you the opportunity to sell your products through them, but you are required to pay fees.
The Promise and Reason for the Product
If you want to communicate about your business or your new product, you need to clarify everything:
- What are the competitive advantages and your added product (your value proposition)?
- How can you convince your targets to buy your product?
For example, if you sell ethnic jewelry, you might find arguments like:
- Handmade, you can wear it on your wrist from a corner of the world
- Quality of the product
- Fits your style
- Add some flair to your summer outfit
The Tone of Communication
To maintain consistency, you need to define an overall tone for your communication.
Let’s take a simple example: a multinational operating in a B2B market will adopt a high institutional tone to fit its objective and remain consistent with its image.
If you are a startup and, for example, are speaking to students, you might decide on a more relaxed and approachable tone!
In short, the tone is defined by who you are and especially by your purpose!
Restrictions
Finally, define the limits of your communication, if any.
This could be, for example, a limited budget, certain confidentiality to respect, a lack of resources, a lack of time… Note anything that could be an obstacle to your communication. This will help you see what is feasible or not.
The Action Plan
Let’s continue our example of a communication plan with the action phase.
Once you have laid these things out, you can move on to concrete actions!
You start by defining the communication channels!
Let’s say, for example, you want to communicate about the launch of your new product!
Media Selection
You need to select them based on your target!
For example, on social media, you don’t need to be present on all platforms! You can choose those that are relevant to your business and your objective. In the case of introducing a student magazine, you would be present on Twitter and Facebook, as this core target (students) is very active on these social networks.
For communication outside of social media, you might choose to distribute promotional items. Or promotional flyers that can be handed out during street marketing.
Another type of support not to be overlooked is also what can be offered to journalists and bloggers! Keep this in mind when refining your communication plan. You can exchange items or links. This will enhance your visibility!
Implementing a Media Planning (Action Calendar) and Budget
Now, you will create a calendar of your actions. This is called media planning.
You define the start date of each of your actions and their duration. You can do this in an Excel file. This gives you an overview of your actions.
Regarding the budget, do not hesitate to request quotes. If you need flyers, how much do paper and printing cost? If you decide to invest in online ads, how much will that cost you? If you want to send goodies, calculate how much they will cost you. Again, an Excel spreadsheet is highly recommended.
So here is an example of a communication plan to provide consistency and organize your actions.